On Sat, 17 May 2008 20:30:51 -0500, "Katey Didd"
<spamless@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
>"mareita" <mareita.2a4ea0d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>news:mareita.2a4ea0d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>>
>> I bought two tomato plants last week and gave them a little water every
>> day except for one day when I stood them in water. That was 5 days ago
>> and they have been fine but today they are wilting.
>> I have read that you should only water them 3 or 4 times a week. Have
>> I done irreperable damage? If not what should I do?
>
>You should water them when they need water, not a certain amount of times
a
>week. Are their roots rotten?
>
>How big are these plants? Are they 1 foot tall, 2 feet?
If they are still smaller, you may have drowned them.
Are they in the ground, or still in pots? It sounds like the latter,
since you say you "stood them in water". Even doing that
BRIEFLY shouldn't cause them to wilt, unless they were in so long and
got so soaked that they gave up the ghost.
You probably know that frequent light, superficial watering is a
no-no. Water usually doesn't penetrate to where it's needed.
Slow, deep, less-frequent watering is the way to go.
How often is a function of many variables:
Ambient temperature
Humidity
Size of plant
Amount of direct sunlight.
(slightly off the subject, ornamental plants
in a dormant state, e.g. have different
water requirements than an actively
blossoming/fruiting plant.)
Just to confuse you further <g> when tomato
blossoms show, most gardeners cut back SOMEWHAT
on their watering, so the plant will put its energy into
making fruit rather than making more greenery.
Tip for future: Use the first knuckle test to see if plants need
watering. IOW, stick your finger in. If you encounter moist soil
past the first knuckle, plant doesn't need water yet.
HTH
Persephone
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